


I Can't Recall

by thekiwistylist



Category: Free!
Genre: A LOT of Angst, Angst, Arguments, F/M, Fem!Nanase Haruka, Fluff, Other, Romance, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-01
Updated: 2021-02-03
Packaged: 2021-03-12 20:35:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,443
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29141625
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thekiwistylist/pseuds/thekiwistylist
Summary: While being dragged out to Australia with her boyfriend Rin, Haruka gets lost.
Relationships: Fem!Nanase Haruka/Matsuoka Rin, Matsuoka Rin/Nanase Haruka, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 15





	1. Australia

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own Free nor any of its incarnations. All rights go to its respected owner(s). This is merely a fun little thing.  
> enjoy <3

As soon as the plane had landed, Haruka had perked up. It wasn't the type of perk where she was excited to see her surroundings, no, it was a nervous kind. Foreign words were all around her, on the signs, coming out of people's mouths--hell, the unfamiliar words even came out of Rins mouth. "Rin." Haruka squeezes his hand tighter in hers, for the usually monotonous girl, the slight rise in her tone makes him look over at her from the corner of his eye. He's mid-conversation with a man holding a sign but he manages to squeeze her hand back as if to say  _ one second. _

The ravenette holds back a sigh, unconsciously pulling herself closer to her redhead as she looks around the airport. People are running to their loved ones, shouting and tearing up and others are walking away from them--passing the security checks to the terminal. Her mind drifts off to when they were leaving the airport back home and Makoto had fussed over her while Nagisa had made her promise to return with cute souvenirs. Rei had wished her safe travels and Gou had hugged her so tight she thought they might fuse into one. It was only when Gou was done squeezing the life of the ocean-eyed girl did she hug her brother in the same way and give him specific instructions to stay safe. 

"..ka..." 

"...Haruka..." 

_ "Haruka?" _ Rin tugs her hand, the man he was talking to is now gone and his full attention is on her. The girl shakes her head, regaining her focus. 

"Haruka, what were you going to tell me?" he cocks his head to the side curiously, his sharp canines glinting for a moment when he opens his mouth. 

"It's..." she looks around the airport once more. "...Nothing." the girl huffs out a breath, earning a skeptical look from her lover. He knew better than to press her, if Haruka had something to say, she'd say it. The girl was born without a filter after all. 

Rin leads them to an exit, where people are all lined up with their passports and it's only when a man in front of her, wearing a uniform and separated by a counter, asks her something she can't understand in the slightest does her cheeks turn pink. "What is he saying?" she cocks her head to the side, keeping her blank-faced composure. 

_ "Sightseeing." _ the unfamiliar language leaves Rins lips and the man with her passport nods his head approvingly. He hands her passport back and Rin all but drags her out the door. 

"I'm going to get us a cab, wait here?" he smiles at her, leaving without another word to join the people near the flock of cars. 

_ Idiot... _ she thinks to herself, holding her travel pack closer to her chest.  _ Why would you take me here out of all places? Rin, you idiot, if you're so worried about my future why don't you take me somewhere in Japan not here where I don't know-- _

"Excuse me, miss, this is going to sound so weird but can we ask for a bit of money? We lost our luggage on the way here and we're just trying to get to our hotel." a blonde woman jumps into her line of sight and the words that leave her mouth make Haru's insides twist uncomfortably. 

"I-I--" she stutters, eyes widening as she taps her throat. Her heart beats twice as loudly, the sound almost deafening. "N-No--" she manages to make out before the blonde in front of her gasps. 

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" she punctuates her words slowly this time before scurrying off to some other blonde girl. The young swimmer's heart continues to drum loudly in her chest but she manages to let out a relieved sigh this time.  _ Why am I here? I can't even speak the language. _ Just as her blank expression finds its way back to her face again, Rin jogs back in her direction. 

_ "Oi! Haruka!" _ he calls out and she fixes him with an angry look that makes him pout. "Grab your stuff, I've got us a cab." 

* * * 

During the ride, the girl only asked once where they were headed and when he smiled back at her and told her it was a surprise, she rolled her eyes and stared out the window for the remainder of the drive. It's only when a large, towering building comes into view does she sit up straighter. Wordlessly, Rin grins from ear to ear as he exits the vehicle with his bag strapped on him. "Where are we?" she questions, grabbing his hand out of instinct. It's almost second-nature to them by now and neither of them mind in the slightest. 

"You'll see" he flashes her his shark-like grin that makes her roll her eyes at him but once his back is turned, she manages to pull a small smile on her lips. The inside of the building is huge and the first thing that comes to her is the familiar scent of chlorine. "Is there a pool here?" she turns to him with a curious look on her face. "Yup. Why don't you swim a little Haru?" the taller male leads her to a pool and on the other side, there are a group of swimmers already in their gear, warming up. She wants to indulge but she can't find a bone in her body that truly wants to. "I don't want to swim." she pulls away from him, clutching the strap on her chest. She isn't sure if it's just because of the realization she had from their fight in the locker room or the fact that he had taken her to a place where she couldn't utter a syllable but Haruka knows she's on edge. 

"Are you sure? We can swim here, it's fine." 

"Are you sure we're allowed to?" she glances at swimmers on the other side, they don't  _ seem _ to mind the pair's presence but what if that changes?

"Of course I am, now, race me?" there's a mischievous glint that sparkles in his ruby gaze that somehow manages to make her smirk... 

"Sure," she murmurs, turning on her heels to avoid his reaction. "I'm going to change." 

In as quick as what could have been two seconds, Haruka emerges with her travel bag in hand instead of slung across her shoulder but she's wearing her sleek black one-piece with the purple designs. "Are you ready to lose?" grins Rin, standing near the edge of the pool with his goggles hanging from a finger. 

"You wish, Matsuoka." the girl strides past him confidently this time and he takes a moment before following her. To be honest, he's relieved. He's so  _ fucking _ relieved that she's willing to swim because Haruka is not the type of girl to go back on her word. If she had told him right then and there she didn't want to swim anymore, he knew she would have stopped. She wouldn't have even looked at another swimsuit till the day she died but she hadn't rejected the idea. Sure, she didn't like the sound of it at first but... she's not ready to let go. 

"We'll see about that,  _ Mrs. Matsuoka." _ he teases, causing her to freeze. He walks past her with an easy smile and she rolls her eyes at him, her face pinker than it was a second ago. 

"Don't say things like that," she mutters, dropping her voice down when they pass the other swimmers. No one says anything, they merely glance at the two of them before retreating to their warmups. 

Haruka tugs the goggles at her neck, adjusting them on her face before she glances at Rin one last time before going into position. 

"Three..." she counts down. 

"Two..." 

"One!" the girl dives into the pool for the first time in a long time. Her form resembling that of a dolphin. The second she's in the water, she has an overwhelming urge to win.  _ Pretty boy flew me to a world I don't know and he wants to win? _ the ravenette thinks to herself, willing her body to move fast.  _ Tough luck. _

The two of them race to the finish but it's Haru who manages to touch the touchpad before Rin does and it's Haruka who comes for air first, her chest rising and falling as the air fills back in her lungs. It's Haruka who takes her goggles off and it's Haruka... who has realized what she's reaching for in the future. 


	2. I Don't Like Strangers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own Free! nor any of it's incarnations~  
> This is just for my dramatic soul.

After the match, Rin had kissed her albeit being pouty for a good half hour after, he was relieved she was resembling her usual self just a little bit. She had insisted on swimming a little longer, and so they left exactly an hour later, completely dried but smelling of the chlorinated water. "Rin, I'm hungry," she mumbles as he hails them a cab. He turns to her with a smile, their hands still interlocked, "It is getting dark outside. Let's go find something to eat then we'll go to the hotel. How does that sound?"

The girl nods, tucking a strand of her black hair behind her ear. Rin had made sure her hair was completely dry before they had even left. He fussed with her wet strands even after she towel-dried it thoroughly enough before tying it into a high ponytail. The couple walk through the city, with Rin playing the part of a guide and Haruka clinging closer to him as she had begun to spot more people. "Are you scared?" he teased, earning a dark glare from the girl on his arm. "Damn... I'd never thought I'd live to see the day  _ the _ Nanase Haruka would ever get scared." 

"Shut up..." she mumbles, her face burning almost as bright as his hair. The same murky feeling from the airport blossoms in her chest once more.  _ Unfamiliar people. Unfamiliar sounds, even a language she can't speak. _ On the plane ride to Australia Haruka was determined to learn a few English words. In the end, she managed to learn one phrase,  _ Hello, my name is Haruka Nanase.  _ It took most of her time getting the punctuation right and in the end, she chose not to learn more. After all, her life was back home in Japan... right? 

"Rin, it's crowded." Haruka tugs on his sleeve, looking out into the crowd. As the sun had begun to set, and the sky was beginning to take on a more violet hue, people had crowded the streets to get some food to take back home. Sensing his girlfriends' discomfort, however, Rin scanned the crowd for a mostly-secluded space. Wordlessly, the taller boy dragged her to a fountain, that compared to the street they were just in, seemed practically empty. 

"Do you want to wait here while I go get you something to eat?" he places a kiss on her cheek and she nods. 

"J-Just don't disappear." her eyes widen at the thought of being left alone in this brand-new country.

"Don't worry Haruka, I'll be right there where you can see me." he points back into the messy crowd. 

She bites her lips, hiding back her frown. "Fine." the ocean-eyed girl grumbles out, it's not like she wanted to go back out there anyways. She tugs one last time on his sleeve before he turns to go, propping herself up on her tippy-toes, and Rin can't help but let out a soft laugh before he leans in to kiss her. The shorter girl can't help but lean in for another kiss, her hands finding their usual place in the back of his head, curling in his hair. 

"Don't take too long," she says when they pull back in her usual monotone voice. 

Rin presses another kiss to her lips, whispering  _ "Stop worrying" _ into her mouth before he manages to pull away from her. If they weren't in public, if they were back at home he knows he wouldn't have been able to control themselves... actually if they were back at home Haruka would have been more demanding with her blank-expression.

The girl watches as he leaves, a huff of frustration leaving her lips. She sits at the edge of the fountain, her eyes never leaving Rin because after all, he is her tour-guide/boyfriend. 

It's only when a small  _ "Meow," _ comes near her that she rips her eyes away from him. 

A small black cat with piercing yellow eyes seems to curl around her leg. "Are you a stray?" Haruka wonders absentmindedly, her attention fully on the feline now. She picks up the cat with ease, petting it behind its ears when she doesn't see a name-tag or even a collar on it. "I guess you could say I'm a stray here too." the girl manages to smile just a little. The cat licks her finger the next time she tries petting her though the girl doesn't mind. She's used to it after all. Feeding and taking care of the strays near her house had become something she looked forward to. 

_ Maybe you're here because you knew I was lonely? _ she muses to herself, however, her expression does not change at the thought.  _ Maybe you came from Japan like me... but that's impossible for you isn't it? I don't think I smell like mackerel today, I haven't had any... so what brought you over to me little kitty?  _

The black cat squirms in her grip and she lets go, allowing it to stay on her lap. 

"Rin is going to be so--" her eyes widen as the words leave her lips. Promptly, her heart manages to fall into the pit of her stomach, eyes racing over the crowd of people. 

_ Where did he go? _

"Rin?" she whispers to herself, narrowing her eyes and scanning over the crowd once more to find her hot-headed shark-toothed buffoon. By this time, the sun was already a murky violet and the lamplights perched on every street were on. The cat seems to sense her panic and hops off her lap, curling around her leg and meowing. "Rin?" her voice raises a panicked-octave, she spins around as if to see if he'd gone to the other side of the street. 

Her heart races, pounding in her ears, drowning out the rest of the world around her.  _ Where did you go? Stupid, stupid Rin...  _

She stumbles forward, earning a few odd glances from onlookers. She clutches her chest, a shaky breath leaving her lips.  _ Where are you? Shit, if I didn't get distracted then-- _

"Miss, are you okay?" a man with soft-looking pink hair approaches her. Her face  _ falls _ because unlike the airport, Rin is not at her side and she can't even begin to  _ recognize the words coming out of this man's mouth.  _

"Y-Yes..." she mutters out, hating the way her face burns. Haruka's not sure if she's pronounced the words right but she's heard it come out of Rins mouth plenty of times to distinguish it was an affirmation. 

"Are you here alone?" he seems to notice her struggling with the word and she's not quite sure to feel embarrassed or relieved. However, she can't figure out for the life of her what he might be saying. 

"I--I--Rin?" the ravenette taps at her throat before she tries to gesture with her hands, trying to gesture another person though her hands fall when the man turns around at someone calling him.  _ "Hey!" _ a purple-haired man calls out to the pink-haired man.  _ "Just leave her be, man, she doesn't understand a thing c'mon!" _ she expects the pink-haired man to turn back to her but he merely shrugs at his friend and  _ leaves. _

_ God, she's sure she's never felt embarrassed like this. _ People are starting to look yet for the life of her she  _ can't _ find him and it's getting darker out by the second. Her legs shake, taking a step further but she trips, almost landing flat on her face but she manages to catch her footing in time to look what she tripped on. The black cat that was around her leg hisses at her angrily then runs off. 

Haru can't even seem to  _ think. _ Her mind is running with too many thoughts and blanking at the same time. __ So, her legs begin to lead, with her chest and mind muddled and warped. Her legs begin to take her through the crowd, ignoring the watchful eyes of the other people.  _ Where did you run off to? _ Haruka clutches the strap of her travel bag, unaware of her shaking frame until she stops to stare at her hand. 

_ I--I'm scared... _ she admits to herself, the thought itself making her insides twist even further. With her other shaky hand, she reaches inside her pocket to pull her phone. 

_ No New Messages.  _

_ No New Calls.  _

_ 10%  _ _ battery left _ her phone warns. 

It takes her a full moment to take a deep breath, just having remembered her cellular device.  _ It's okay, I'll just call him.  _

She clicks on his name, bringing it to her ear but the ringing doesn't sate her worries in the slightest. In fact, it makes her feel worse when he doesn't pick up. So she calls, again and again, and again but he still doesn't pick up. 

_ Is his phone dead?  _

Haruka lets out another shaky breath allowing her legs to pull her forward, her eyes scanning through the unfamiliar faces. She doesn't know how or why but the girl finds herself away from the loud noises and the crowds... she finds herself near a park, her eyes scanning the empty area for any sign of Rin. _ Would he have gone this far without telling her? Without bringing her with him? _

Her heart aches with the weight of fear,  _ Why would he take me to a place where I can't even learn the language? _ A large willow tree looms before her, near a deserted playground... and she finds herself walking to it, sitting under its shade, hidden under its weeping leaves. 

"D-Damnit, where am I now?" she shakes, finally letting out a breath. Her voice catches in her throat and there's an unfamiliar uncomfortable sensation in her eyes that starts to burn... it burns and blurs her vision. 

"W-What's happening?" Haruka's breath hitches in her throat when something hot and wet drips down the side of her face. But, more wetness comes down, flooding her cheeks and making her eyes feel sorer than they did a second ago. Hesitantly, Haru reaches out to touch her face, jerking back when she feels the dampness transfer onto her fingers. 

"Am I-I...  _ crying?" _ she hiccups immediately clasping a hand over her mouth to muffle the sounds. Little whimpers are muffled by her hand--no matter how hard she tries she can't stop the tears from coming down. The feeling is just as foreign as the place she's in right now... and the more tears that flow the louder she gets and the harder she presses her hands against her mouth to drown out the sound of her sobs. 

Whenever Rin cried it wasn't something she'd like to see... so why should she be loud enough to let anyone else see her? 

_ Why did he bring me to a place where I can't even look for him?  _ the girl thinks to herself, trying to stop the tears that keep coming.  _ Damnit, why won't he answer his phone?! Why am I here--where the hell even am I now? Why can't I stop crying--what the hell is wrong with me? _ Her thoughts begin to fill her head, drowning out the sound of her own muffled sobs.  _ What had even happened?  _ she tries to recollect her thoughts, wiping each tear as they come in a fruitless attempt to stop them from flooding down her face. 

"I-I'm s-scared..." she admits aloud, lifting her head to the sky. Instead of a sky, she's met with the willow tree's branches and the leaves that seem to be rustling in the wind. The girl isn't that surprised at her own words, from the minute she had left Japan fear festered in her chest, she was more shocked at the new feeling more than anything else. "Pl-Please R-Rin... I'm scared." 


	3. Finding Willow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I~ do~ not~ own~ Free!~  
> All rights go it's rightful creators, I'm just a fool for drama <3

_"Stop worrying."_ he whispers on her lips, in between a kiss. She stares at him, with her signature neutral expression but he knows that she feels nervous. He and their friends back at home were probably the only people on the whole _planet_ who could accurately distinguish between the girls emotions. He turns on his heels, wading through the crowd to find something for her to eat. His garnet eyes catch a sign of a fish-themed restaurant. 

_She'd like mackerel,_ he sighs to himself, pinching the bridge of his nose as he enters the establishment. _What am I going to do with her obsession?_

Though, he can't find a bone in his body that's serious because just at the thought of Haruka back at home cooking with her blue fish-embossed apron on top of her one-piece makes him smile. Rin can practically _feel_ the girls gaze at the back of his head, but since he knows she's uncomfortable in this new setting he doesn't move anywhere too crowded where she might not spot him. 

_"_ _Aye, Rin!"_ an aussie-sounding voice makes him turn. He smiles at the familiar faces, his caretakers Russell and Lori approach him, hand in hand. 

"Russel! Lori!" he smiles at them, unsurprised when Lori wraps her arms around his neck, practically squeezing the life out of him in a Gou-like hug. 

"We didn't know we'd catch you here," smiles Lori. "Actually, we're out here getting stuff for when you visit tomorrow." 

"You don't need to go through any trouble for us--" he tries to say but he's cut off by Russell wacking his shoulder. 

"Don't say that, son, we're so happy to see you... and _Haruka."_ Russell waggles his brows at the girls name making Rin's cheeks flare as red as the hair on his head. 

"Oh, yes!" the older woman practically jumps. "I've just been _dying_ to meet Haruka! I remember you couldn't stop talking about her when you were here. It seemed as if she was your muse." 

At that, the redhead smiles a wistful look falling on his face. "She _is_ my muse." he smiles mostly to himself. 

"Ah, young love. Who would have thought it would make our Rin a fool?" teases Russell. 

"Hey!" blushes Rin. "Anyways, would you like to meet her? She's right over--" he spins on his heel, about to point at the fountain but the fountain isn't in view. Instead, people crowd all around him, blocking anyone's sight on either side. 

"She's by the fountain," his heart picks up a little. _She's fine,_ he tells himself _It's no use making her worry though..._ He completely forgets about the food, his shoulders tensing as he turns back to the Australian couple. "Would you mind if I go? I can't see her from here and she was worried earlier." 

"We'll come with you!" offers Lori. "But why is the poor girl worried? Did something happen?" 

They begin to wade their way through the crowd, lost in conversation. It becomes increasingly hard to get to the other side as they keep bumping into people left and right. 

_"Rin, grab my_ _hand."_ he feels Lori tug on his sleeve and for a moment, he's reminded of Haruka, which only makes him fret even more. The woman extends her hand from afar he can see that she's still holding Russells, "So we don't get separated in the crowd." she explains when he takes her hand with a puzzled expression. 

The three of them struggle to make it out of the crowd, making their way through shortcuts led by Russell and Lori which only make his heart beat faster because the longer they take the longer he knows Haruka is waiting. _Just a little further..._ he thinks to himself as he's being pulled into an empty street by Russell who had taken the lead. 

"Oh goodness, that took forever." sighs Lori, pulling her hand away from Rin's and wiping her forehead. 

"Took us almost thirty minutes to get outta there." Russell shakes his head staring at his watch. 

Rin's heart stops. _Thirty minutes?_

_Thirty whole minutes to get out of there? Crap, Haruka's going to be fucking pissed._

"The fountain should be over this corner since we came through that way," guides Lori, taking the lead. The two men follow her wordlessly, though, it's only when they do turn the corner does his mind blank. 

_She's... not there?_

The fountain is completely deserted. Haruka is nowhere to be seen.

"Are you sure she was by the fountain?" the older man cocks his head but Lori looks back at Rin worridley. 

"I'm sure..." he whispers, walking to the fountain himself as if she'd magically be on the other side. "Haruka was here. She doesn't know English--" he begins to panic. The couple share a look, before Russell sets his hands on Rin's shoulders, looking him straight in the eye. 

"Don't worry, Rin," he advises the younger man. "She probably wandered around, there's not much walking distance here so she couldn't have gone far." 

"Rus's right, Rin, besides you said she doesn't speak English? Then she probably knows not to go too far on her own. She was probably looking for you before the crowd started." 

He nodded, swallowing the lump in his chest. Logically, they were right. Haruka didn't want him to be out of her line of sight but he knew her well enough to know that no matter how scared or worried she got she wouldn't vanish. 

That is... unless something happened to her. 

_Oh god, what if something happened to her?_ the thought tortures him. The couple split up, not to far from each other but far enough to look on seperate sides while they call out her name. 

_"Oi, Haruka!"_ Rin calls out with them, passing down the empty sidewalks. A black cat sits at the end of the concrete pavement, looking at Rin disinterestedly. "Would you know by any chance where Haruka is?" he laughs mirthlessly, looking down at the feline. Rin runs a hand through his hair as if he could simple run out his worry and stress but it doesn't seem to work. 

The cat opens it's mouth, revealing it's sharp teeth while it hisses at Rin.

 _Rude,_ he thinks to himself. He hadn't ever had much luck with strays... but Haru on the other hand, seemed to have a magic touch, especially with cats. But she couldn't stand dogs, not at all. He reaches into his pocket while he continues to walk down the path, calling her name, only stopping once more at the feeling of his phone. 

_Oh my god,_ _did I really forget I have a phone? She would have called me--_

But his phone doesn't turn on. The screen remains black, only lighting up to show the symbol of the low battery. 

_Shit, it's dead._

_What if she called me?_

_Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck..._

"Russell! Lori!" he calls over to them, turning back to the direction of the fountain, where they had split up. 

Lori is the first to emerge, her brows crinkling with worry for a girl she had never met before. "Did you find her?" she asks, hope sparkling in her eyes but the look on his face makes the light go away as soon as it had appeared. 

"Can I borrow your phone? Mine died and I'm not sure if hers is dead either--" he's cut off when Lori pulls out her phone and in a quick motion enters her passcode. 

"Of course Rin, I just hope she's okay." the woman sets a hand on her chest.

He doesn't even mutter a single thank you, already punching Haruka's number inside the phone before bringing it to his ear. 

_Ring... ring... ring..._

_..._

_..._

_The number you are trying to reach--_

"Damnit, Haruka." he grits out, dialing again. The girl was not known to answer calls that weren't from a number already in her contacts, she had a close-knit bunch of friends and with that, she was wholly content. 

_Ring... ring... ring--_

"Haruka?" he blurts out when the line reaches. The other side is silent until he hears a _sniffle._ Out of all things... _a sniffle._ It makes his eyes widen, makes his heart race a hundred--no a thousand times over again in his chest. He had only ever seen her cry one in his whole life. But it wasn't even real tears, she had been too sick to compete once and drowned. When she came back up her eyes were watering from the pressure in her chest. 

_"Haruka--where are you? Where did you go?"_ he switches back to Japanese, ignoring the way Russell and Lori take a step back as if the conversation was extremely private. He didn't give a damn who heard him, why should he be ashamed of his language? Especially when his Haruka does not sound okay at all on the other end. 

Another sniffle that makes his gut wrench comes... but this time it's followed by a whimper. 

_"I--I-I don't know..."_ he barely hears her voice, it's a broken whimper, a plea almost. " _Fuck.. I-I don't know..."_

"Take a breath Haru... just describe where you are and I'll find you, okay?" 

He hears her take a breath that sounds too shaky that makes him too scared to see what she's like when he finds her. He desperately wants to ask her why she's crying but he needs to see her--to make sure she's not hurt first. 

_"I..."_ her voice drifts off. _"I.. think I-I'm at a park...?"_

_"R-Rin w-wh--"_ her words are cut off when the line ends. Rins mouth feels drier with each breath, her phone must've died because he was surer than hell itself he hadn't hung up on her. 

"Rin, where--" Russell opens his mouth only to close it when Rin says, "Where is the nearest park?" 

"Park?" Lori cocks her head. "There's one a few streets down actually, it's not that far from here." 

"We'll lead you there." the taller man nods his head at Rin as if he could understand what the other was feeling. Rin doesn't argue. He doesn't say a word. Not a single one, simply following the couple to the park that he desperately hoped she'd be there. 

* * * 

When they get there, it's already too dark to see anything or anyone at that point so Russell and Lori flip the flashlight on their phones on. From his first initial scan, he doesn't see _anyone._ Of course he hadn't expected to see any kid out this late but he had expected to see Haruka somewhere--anywhere around damnit. 

_Shit, shit, shit, shit--_ his mind races, he walks into the darkness about to call her name when he hears a sound near the large willow tree by the play-set. 

"Haruka?" he calls out softly, remembering her shaky voice on the phone. "Haruka, is that you?" he walks closer to the tree, it seems like a place she would go. The leaves are covering the area surrounding it, making it a perfect place to hide. 

He pushes the leaves away "Haruka--" he stops because even in the dark he _knows_ it's her. She's sitting with her knees pressed to her her chest and a hand over her mouth. Her ocean eyes are so fucking red, they're red and puffy but there's still tears falling from her face. The sight is unnerving because he hadn't ever seen her like this. 

"What happened?" he's quick to rush to her side, to stare into her widening eyes when he reaches out to cup her face. For a moment, she hesitates but when his warm hand meets her cold face she throws her arms around his shoulder, pulling herself closer to him while she buries her face in the crook of his neck. Her tears wet the collar of his shirt, yet he can't seem to even give a damn because he holds her tightly, so tight in fact that he thinks if she lets go she'll slip through his fingers again. 

"Shh..." he whispers into her ear, one hand rubbing soothing circles in her back and the other stroking her hair. "Shhh... you're alright Haruka, I promise." 

_Why did she hesitate?_ he thinks to himself, his own eyes widening when she tightens her grip on him. _What happened that made her cry like this?_


End file.
